1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a communication path setup apparatus that sets up communication paths for a plurality of pieces of communications equipment connected to each other via communication lines, a program for implementing a communication path setup method, and a storage medium storing the program, and also relates to a communication path setup apparatus that sets up communication paths for music data (logical connections) between a plurality of pieces of equipment connected to each other over a network to constitute a music system, a program for implementing a communication path setup method, and a storage medium storing the program. More particularly, the present invention relates to a communication path setup apparatus that enables a user to easily recognize (distinguish) between an actual music system configuration based on actual pieces of equipment existing in a logical music system configuration (logically handled by a communication path setup apparatus and program) based on a setup data file or the like, and an imaginary music system configuration based on imaginary pieces of equipment not existing in the logical music system configuration, a communication path setup program, and a storage medium storing the program.
Throughout the present specification, a system configuration of equipment which is physically connected to an actual music system and therefore actually existing therein is referred to as “the actual music system configuration”, and a system configuration of equipment which is not physically connected to the present music system and therefore not actually existing therein is referred to as “the imaginary music system configuration”.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, application software has been known which is capable of setting up communication paths for a plurality of pieces of communications equipment connected to each other via communication lines.
There has been known application software of this kind which makes it possible to set up paths for communicating MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) signals and audio signals between a plurality of pieces of communications equipment (hereinafter referred to as “the nodes”) connected to each other via communication lines, more particularly, to set up paths defining from which MIDI signal output terminal of which node, a MIDI signal is to be input to which MIDI signal input terminal of which node and defining from which MIDI signal output terminal the input MIDI signal is to be output to which MIDI signal input terminal (communication paths for audio signals are also defined in the same manner) (see e.g. manuals of software applications called mLAN, and Patchbay).
In this conventional software, all the communication terminals (MIDI signal input and output terminals and audio signal input and output terminals) of all nodes connected to each other are displayed in a list, and when the user selects a communication source terminal and a communication destination terminal from this list, a communication path is set up between the selected terminals. When the user disconnects a communication line connected to a certain node, all pieces of information (including information on the communication paths) on settings or configurations of the node are erased.
Further, it has been known to configure a music system which is capable of transmitting and receiving music data, such as audio signals and MIDI signals, in real time, over a network conforming to a predetermined communication standard (IEEE1394 standard) compatible with multimedia, by making use of a communication standard (registered trademark “mLAN”) developed by the present assignee. This music system is implemented by physically connecting a control apparatus, such as a personal computer, and various pieces of musical equipment (a synthesizer, a tone generator, a recorder, mixer, and so forth) to each other (i.e. connecting IEEE1394 connectors provided in the equipment by cables). A communication path setup apparatus (software) (hereinafter, referred to as “the patchbay”) for setting up communication paths (logical connections) of desired music data between pieces of equipment (nodes) connected to each other over such a network is disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2001-203732. In the music system described above, music data is transmitted between the pieces of equipment according to the logical connections set up by the patchbay.
The patchbay displays a list of communication terminals (logical terminals) for music data provided in a plurality of nodes constituting a music system, and enables a user to logically connect (electrically connect) one or more communication sources (communication terminal(s) for outputting music data) selected from the communication terminals in the list and one or more communication destinations (communication terminal(s) for inputting the music data) selected from the same. Information on the connections between the selected terminals can be stored as a setup data file. One setup data file stores the connections concerning all nodes constituting one logical music system configuration. The logical music system configuration includes an actual music system configuration based on the existing or actual nodes and an imaginary music system configuration based on the non-existing or imaginary nodes.
When an instruction for reading the setup data file (hereinafter referred to as “the Open instruction”) is issued, the connections of logical terminals stored in the setup data file are read as a logical music system configuration, and displayed in a list (in place of the list displayed hitherto). At this time, the read connections of logical terminals are not reflected on the existing nodes, but only displayed as a list of contents of the logical music system configuration. To cause the logical music system configuration to be reflected on the existing or actual nodes, it is necessary to issue an Apply instruction. When the Apply instruction is issued, information on the connections displayed in the list is transmitted to each of the nodes whereby it is reflected on the node. At this time, the displayed list is not changed, and the read connections of logical terminals are not reflected on nodes which are defined in the list but do not actually exist in the system so that the nodes remain displayed as they are in the list. This produces a discrepancy between the logical music system configuration displayed in the list and the actual music system configuration based on the actual connections of the existing nodes on which the logical music system configuration is reflected. To display the list of the actual music system configuration, it is necessary to issue an Update instruction. When the Update instruction is issued, the patchbay receives information on actual connections of each node stored therein from the node, to display the actual connections in a list. At this time, the nodes displayed but not actually existing before the Update instruction is issued are erased from the displayed list. This causes the logical music system configuration in the list displayed after erasing the non-existing nodes (hereinafter referred to as “the list after the Update instruction”) and the actual music system to completely match each other. That is, the list that should originally displays the logical music system configuration displays the actual music system configuration.
However, in the conventional software described hereinbefore, the information on settings or configurations of the disconnected node is completely erased, and therefore when it is desired for a newly added node to take over the information, that is, when it is desired to apply the information as it is to the newly added node, the user has to manually input the same settings set to the disconnected node to the newly added node one by one, which is troublesome.
Further, in the patchbay described above, when the user desires to recognize (discriminate between) the actual music system configuration based on the existing nodes and the imaginary music system configuration based on the non-existing nodes, in the logical music system configuration based on the read setup data file, it is only necessary to compare the logical music system configuration displayed in a list in response to the Open instruction and the actual music system configuration displayed in a list in response to the Update instruction. Conventionally, however, as described hereinabove, the logical music system configuration displayed in a list in response to the “Open” instruction, which is comprised of the actual music system configuration and the imaginary music system configuration, is rewritten into a music system configuration comprised of only the actual music system configuration when the Update instruction is issued. Therefore, the user needs to store a part of the logical music system configuration which corresponds to the imaginary music system configuration (or a part of the same corresponding to the actual music system configuration to be updated) in some way or other. This makes the comparison operation very complicated.
Further, to cause existing nodes to take over the connections of the non-existing nodes contained in the logical music system configuration read from the setup data file in response to the Open instruction, that is, to apply the connections of the non-existing nodes to the existing nodes, it is necessary to store information on the connections of the non-existing nodes in some way or other, and after the actual music system configuration is displayed in a list in response to the Update instruction, based on the stored information, the connections of the non-existing nodes have to be manually input one by one to the existing or actual nodes to which the connections of the non-existing nodes are desired to be applied, which is a troublesome operation.